IC CARD WITH BOARD POSITIONING MEANS

Abstract: An IC card has a housing (20) which can hold a circuit board (32) at a selected level. In one card (10), the card housing comprises lower and upper halves (22, 24) that each has platform parts (114, 116, 120, 122) that engage corresponding surfaces of the circuit board. In another card (310), the housing includes housing connector parts (312, 314) with platforms (390, 392) that are received in holes (400, 402) of the circuit board. The platforms can have two or more steps to hold the circuit board assembly at a selected one of a plurality of different heights.

Description: IC CARD WITH BOARD POSITIONING MEANS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION: IC cards, which are often memory cards, are commonly constructed with a molded plastic housing having a plurality of housing parts. Under JEIDA standards, each IC card has a card length of 3.370 inch (85.6mm), a card width of 2.126 inch (54mm), and a card thickness of 0.190 inch (4.8mm). Accordingly, there is little vertical space between top and bottom surfaces of a circuit board lying in the housing, and top or bottom cover portions of the card. If the vertical height of the circuit board could be changed, a designer could leave about equal spaces at both surfaces of the circuit board to place a maximum number of thin components on both board surfaces. Alternatively, the designer could maximize the space on one board surface to accommodate thicker components on that surface, at the expense of eliminating moderately thick components on the other surface. If such choice could be made by the circuit board manufacturer who assembles the IC card, with the other components unchanged from a "standard" design, this would increase design choices for the circuit board manufacturer. SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, an IC card is provided that is of low cost and which facilitates selection of circuit board height. The IC card includes a housing with a plurality of spaced platforms that support spaced locations on a circuit board. Each platform carries an upwardly projecting step, and the circuit board has a plurality of apertures that each receives one of the steps. In one card, the housing includes lower and upper housing halves that form lower and upper cover portions and at least part of each vertical side of the housing. The housing halves each have a plurality of platforms at each side, with each side of the circuit board trapped between the platforms of the two housing halves. In another card, the housing includes forward and rearward housing connector parts with at least the forward housing connector part having a laterally- extending row of contacts that engage corresponding contact pads on the circuit board. Each housing connector part also has peg-like platform steps lying laterally beyond opposite ends of the row of contacts. Each circuit board end portion has apertures at its opposite sides which receive corresponding peg-like steps. Each platform can have at least two steps and a board- supporting surface at the bottom of each step, to support a circuit board at a selected height while horizontally positioning the board. The novel features of the invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The invention will be best understood from the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an isometric view of an IC card and an electronic device in the form of a lap top computer, constructed in accordance with the present invention. FIG. 2 is an exploded isometric view of the IC card of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is an exploded isometric view of sections of a side portion of the lower and upper housing halves, and also showing three different embodiments of a circuit board which can be mounted on the housing halves. FIG. 4 is a partial isometric view of a portion of the lower housing half and one of the circuit boards of FIG. 3, shown assembled. FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view taken on the line 5 - 5 of FIG. 1. FIG. 6 is a partial sectional view taken on the line 6 - 6 of FIG. 1. . FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 5. FIG. 8 is an isometric view of an IC card of another embodiment of the invention. FIG. 9 is an exploded isometric view of the IC card of FIG. 8. FIG. 10 is a partial exploded view of the IC card of FIG. 9. FIG. 11 is a partial sectional view taken on line 11-11 of FIG. 10, showing the parts in an assembled position, and showing two other circuit boards in phantom lines. FIG. 12 is a partial sectional view of the IC card of FIG. 9. DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS FIG. 1 illustrates an IC (integrated circuit) card 10 of the present invention, that can be inserted in a forward direction F into a slot 12 of a thin electronic device 14. When the card is inserted, a pair of grounding contacts 16 wipe the opposite sides of the card to discharge any static electricity. As shown in FIG. 2, the IC card 10 includes a housing 20 having first and second or lower and upper housing parts or halves 22, 24. A circuit board assembly 30 which lies within the housing, includes a circuit board 32 and active components 34 such as integrated circuit "chips", capacitors, and resistors, in addition to passive components (conductive traces, wires, etc.). The circuit board has lower and upper faces or surfaces 36, 38 and the components can be mounted on both surfaces. The housing also includes front and rear connector frames or parts 50, 52 that hold rows of contacts. The circuit board has rows 40, 42 of conductive pads at its opposite ends which are soldered to contact tails 44, 46 of contacts that lie in the connector housing parts. The IC card is assembled by first placing the connector housing parts 50, 52 so the contact tails 44, 46 lie on the rows of contact pads 40, 42 of the circuit board, and soldering the tails to the pads. Then the circuit board with the connector housing parts thereon is placed on one of the housing halves such as the lower one 22, with ears 54, 56 of the connectors received in notches 60, 62 at the ends of the housing half. The upper housing half 24 is closed over the lower one and the housing halves are sealed together to complete the IC card. The circuit board 32 has a ground plane 70 with exposed opposite side portions 72, 74 that lie at opposite side portions of the card on both its upper and lower surfaces. The circuit board must be accurately and securely mounted in the housing, with the circuit board surrounded in almost all directions by electrically conductive portions of the housing to guard against EMI (electromagnetic interference). Also, the ground plane 70 of the circuit board usually must be electrically connected to conductive portions at opposite sides of the housing to enable static discharge when the card is inserted into an electronic device. The housing has width-spaced opposite sides 80, 82 spaced by a maximum width dimension W (of 54mm), and has length-spaced front and rear ends 84, 86 spaced by a maximum length dimension L (of 85mm) in a longitudinal direction M. The housing also has a thickness-spaced top and bottom and a maximum thickness dimension T (of 4.8mm). The lower housing half 22 forms a lower cover portion 90 and a pair of upstanding flanges 92, 94 at opposite sides of the lower cover portion. Similarly, the upper housing half 24 has a top cover portion 100 and has opposite depending flanges 102, 104. When the lower and upper housing halves are joined, the flanges of the lower and upper housing halves abut one another and form a space between the cover portion in which the circuit board assembly 30 is received. Each cover portion 90, 100 has a peripheral portion 106, 107 (FIG. 5), and has a center portion 108, 109, with the secondary thickness Q between the peripheral portions being less than the maximum card thickness T. The circuit board 32 (FIG. 2) has groups of longitudinally-spaced apertures 110, 112 at its opposite sides, which are labeled 110A, 110B, etc. and 112A, 112B etc. The lower housing half has a group of longitudinally-spaced lower platforms 114, 116 as its opposite sides, which are labeled 114A, 114C, 114E, and 116A, 116C, and 116E which receive corresponding apertures on the circuit board. The upper housing half has spaced upper platforms 120, 122 which are labeled 120B, 120D and 122B, 122D and which engage the circuit board. As described below, the platforms accurately locate the circuit board both horizontally and vertically, while preventing it from "rattling", and while providing good electrical contact with the ground plane of the circuit board. FIG. 3 shows portions of the lower and upper housing parts 22, 24 and a portion of the circuit board 32. Each of the flanges such as the lower flange 92 includes an outer wall 124, with the platforms lying inside the outer wall. The upper flange 102 is similarly constructed with an outer wall 126. The lower platform 114A has an uppermost or first step 130 which is received in a corresponding aperture 110A of the circuit board 32. The lower face 36 of the circuit board lies on an interrupted board-supporting surface 132 of a second step 134 of the platform. Thus, the aperture 110A of the circuit board is used to fix the horizontal position of the circuit board in forward and rearward directions F, R, while the lower surface 36 of the circuit board is vertically supported. Other lower platforms such as 114C have steps 130C and upwardly-facing surfaces 132C that support other locations along the circuit board side 72. All corresponding board-supporting surfaces such as 132, 132C lie in a common horizontal plane, with a step having a portion lying above that plane. The upper platforms such as 120B have lowermost or first steps such as 140B which are received in corresponding circuit board apertures such as 110B. The upper platform also has a second platform step 142B forming a downwardly-facing board-engaging surface 144B. The downwardly-facing surface 144B presses against the upper surface 38 of the circuit board 32. The circuit board 32 has a predetermined thickness A, and the difference B in heights of the board-engaging surfaces 132 and 144B in the assembled card, is slightly less than the circuit board thickness A. As a result, the portion of the circuit board around the slot 110B is downwardly deflected, as compared to the flat orientation which the board assumes in the absence of the upper platform part 120B. The resulting slight bend of the circuit board results in the circuit board pressing firmly against the platform surfaces 132, 144B, 132C, etc. In one IC card that applicant designed, with overall dimension described above, the circuit board had a thickness A of 1.26mm, and the board-engaging surfaces had a height difference B of 1.14mm, for a difference D (FIG. 6) of 0.12mm. The upper and lower platform parts such as 114A and 120B were longitudinally spaced apart by 16.5mm. FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the assembled IC card, although only the circuit board 32 of the circuit board assembly is shown. It can be seen that the corresponding flanges 92, 102 of the lower and upper housing halves 22, 24 engage each other, by means of the ends 92e, 102e of the flanges substantially abutting one another. The other flanges 94, 104 are similarly connected together. The flanges of the lower and upper housing halves form substantially the entire height of the sides 80, 82 of the housing of the IC card. Each of the housing halves 22, 24 is preferably molded of an electrically conductive polymer (e.g. silver particles in polyester), with the lower flanges 92, 94 being integrally molded with the lower cover portion 90, and with the upper flanges 102, 104 being molded integrally with the upper cover portion 100. A conductive molded plastic material has a bulk resistivity that is about two orders of magnitude greater than that of copper (whose electrical resistivity is 1.7 microhm-centimeter). However, the resistivity of such conductive plastic material is moderate, and is considered to be electrically conductive when its resistivity is less than four orders of magnitude greater than that of copper. It is possible to embed a thin metal sheet or foil in each housing half when molding it, although each housing half is still formed primarily of a conductive polymer. An important advantage of the construction shown in FIG. 5, is that, except for the housing connector parts, this results in the housing being formed primarily of two parts, with the conductive sides providing EMI (electromagnetic interference) protection at the s'des of the card. The circuit board is securely held in place against "rattling" by the platforms of the lower and upper housing halves, and these platforms also provide contact of each of the housing halves with the circuit board ground plane. FIG. 7 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 5, showing one side 72 of the ground plane 70 of the circuit board 32, and showing the substantially abutting edges 92e, 102e of the flanges 92, 102. FIG. 7 shows a quantity of electrically conducted adhesive 140 which joins the flange ends to seal them against the entrance of dirt while providing good electrical contact between them. A quantity of conductive paste 142 which has been placed on the board-engaging surface 132 of a platform part 114C, assures better electrical contact between the ground plane 70 and the housing lower half 22. FIG. 3 not only shows circuit board 32, but shows another, alternative circuit board 150 which is designed to rest on a top board-engaging surface or surface region 152 of the lower platform part 114A. The circuit board 150 has a slot 154 which receives the second step 142B of the upper platform part 120B so the upper platform part can press down on the circuit board at a region immediately surrounding the slot 154. FIG. 4 shows the circuit board 150 lying on the surface 152 of the lower platform part 114A. The advantage of this arrangement is that it provides more room below the lower surface 156 of the circuit board, although it results in less room above the upper surface 158. This arrangement allows somewhat taller components to be mounted on the lower surface 156 of the board, although it may require somewhat shorter components on the upper surface. FIG. 3 shows another alternate circuit board 160 which has a wide slot 162 which receives the second step 134 of the lower platform part 114A. The circuit board 160 has a region at 164 which is pressed down by a lower surface 166B of the upper platform part 120B. The circuit board 160 results in the greatest height above the circuit board. It is noted that circuit board components are available in a range of sizes, with those of larger heights often being less expensive than those of smaller heights, especially in the case of integrated circuits. The ability to vary the available height above and below the circuit board, enables the use of circuit components of a total minimal cost. As shown in FIG. 6, it would be possible to provide platforms such as 170 with board-supporting surfaces 172, and to provide steps such as 174 and 176 at locations spaced from the platform 170. Applicant prefers to form the steps so they project from the board-supporting surfaces of the platforms. FIG. 8 illustrates another IC card 310 which has connectors 312, 314 at its front and rear ends, respectively. The connectors have connector housing frames or parts 302, 304 that form parts of the connector housing 306. The card can be inserted in a forward direction F into an electronic devices 316, until contacts 320 held by the front connector housing part 302 engage corresponding contacts 322 of the electronic device. The card is withdrawn in a rearward direction R. The card has JEIDA dimensions, in upward and downward directions U, D, lateral directions L and longitudinal directions F, R. FIG. 9 shows that the IC card includes a circuit board assembly 330 with electronic components 331 mounted on a circuit board 332. The circuit board has laterally opposite side 380, 382 and forward and rearward end portions 334, 336, and has laterally-extending rows of contact pads 340, 342 at its opposite end portions. The front and rear housing connector parts, or connector housing parts 302, 304 each comprises a block of molded plastic, which holds at least one laterally extending row of contacts with contact tails 344, 346 constructed to engage corresponding rows of contact pads 340, 342 on the circuit board. It is noted that the circuit board has upper and lower surfaces 350, 352, and the contact pads are normally located on the lower surface 352. The housing 306 includes a cover 360 with upper and lower cover parts 366, 368 that have sheet-like portions 362, 364 that lie respectively above and below a majority of the surface area of the circuit board. A pair of upper side flanges 370, 372 of the upper cover part engage corresponding lower side flanges 374, 376 of the lower cover part. The parts are assembled by first mounting the circuit board opposite end portions on the connector housing parts 302, 304. This subassembly is placed in the lower cover part 368. The rear 373 of the upper cover part is pieced at the front 375 of the lower one, and the upper cover part is slid in the rearward direction R. U-shaped fingers 377, 378 at the front and rear of corresponding cover parts help to keep the fully assembled cover parts in place on the connectors. Previous JEIDA IC cards have used a molded plastic frame which held the other parts together. U.S. Patents 5,207,586 and 5,244,397 show IC cards of this type. In previous and present IC cards there is some mechanical connection between the circuit board and the housing connector parts through the solder connections of contact tails 344, 346 with the conductive pads 340, 342 on the circuit board. However, such solder connections cannot be relied upon for strong mechanical coupling, which was previously achieved by the molded plastic frame. The IC card 310 is frameless, with the opposite end portions 334, 336 of the circuit board mounted directly on the front and rear connector housing parts 302, 304. The rear end portion 336 of the board has board mount parts 381 , 383 at its opposite sides, that mount on the rear connector housing part 304, and the front end portion 334 of the board has board mount parts 385, 387 that mount on the front connector housing part 302. The connector housing parts have corresponding support parts 391 , 393, 395 and 397, with all mount parts being similar and all support parts being similar. As shown in FIG. 10, each circuit board mount part such as 381 , extends laterally beyond a corresponding row of contact pads 340 (e.g. laterally beyond an end of the row). Each board mount part such as 381 of the circuit board end portion is directly mounted on a corresponding connector support part such as 391 which extends laterally beyond a corresponding row of contacts 344. Each support part such as 391 , forms a platform with first and second sets of steps 390, 392 in the form of pegs that project up from a first board-supporting surface 394. The side 380 of the circuit board which forms the mount part 381 , has a pair of apertures 400, 402 that are designed to closely receive the corresponding set of steps 390, 392. Thus, the front and rear connectors form an apparatus for holding the circuit board. It is noted that the covers are directly mounted on the front and rear connector housing parts, as is the circuit board 330. No intermediate frame apart from the cover parts 366, 368 and the circuit board, extends between the connector housing parts 302, 304. It is noted that there is a grounding electrical connection between the cover and a ground plane of the circuit board. Fig. 12 shows that the lower cover part 368 has a tab 430 which engages a location on a ground plane 432. However, this does not provide a rigid connection or mechanical support, and there is substantially no other direct connection between the circuit board and cover. Figs. 10 and 11 show that each platform such as 391 has a group of steps 390, 392, with each group such as 390 having steps 440, 442, and 444. The first step 440 is of greatest width A, while the second and third steps 442, 444 have progressively smaller widths B and C. The platform 391 forms board-supporting surfaces or surface regions 394, 450, 452 at the bottom of each step. The holes such as 400 in the circuit board 330, are shown in Fig. 11 as having a hole width B so the walls of the circuit board holes are closely received in the second steps 342, and the lower surface of the circuit board rests on the second board-supporting surface 450. A manufacturer of the card housing parts commonly sells such parts to a firm that designs and constructs a circuit board with its own circuitry thereon, and assembles the card. The circuit board manufacturer usually has drills that can form the holes such as 400, 402 in a precise pattern. The circuit board manufacturer can choose the particular height of the circuit board on the connector housing by choosing the diameter of the circuit board holes that he drills. A particular height of the circuit board above the first surface 394, is chosen so that the desired circuit components can be mounted on the circuit board. If an engineer who designs the circuit board requires components of large vertical thickness, he may drill small holes to receive platform steps 444, so the circuit board 470 rests on the third platform 452. If the engineer wishes to cram a large number of circuit components of moderately small thickness onto the board, he can use large diameter holes to receive platform steps 440, so a circuit board 460 rests on the first surface region 390. A variety of approaches can be used to securely fasten the circuit board in place after its holes have received the pegs, including press fitting onto the steps or adhesive. It should be noted that in some cards, no contacts are required at the rear of the card, in which case the rear connector housing part can be formed by a block of molded plastic without contacts. Although terms such as "vertical", "horizontal", "upper and lower", etc, have been used herein to describe the parts of the IC card as shown in the figures, it should be understood that the IC card and its parts can be assembled and used in any orientation with respect to gravity. Thus, the invention provides an IC card which is of simplified construction and which simplifies selection of circuit board height with respect to the connectors. The housing of the card has a plurality of platforms, each with a step, and the circuit board has a plurality of apertures that receive the steps. Each platform can have a plurality of steps of different heights, with a board-supporting surface at the bottom and/or top of at least one step, to support a circuit board at a selected one of a plurality of heights. One IC card has lower and upper housing halves, with platforms at their sides that support the circuit board. The platforms can be positioned to slightly deflect the circuit board edges. Another IC card is frameless, in that opposite end portions of the circuit board are directly and rigidly connected to front and rear connector housing parts. The connection of each circuit board end portion to a connector housing part is preferably accomplished at locations laterally beyond the row or rows of contacts of the connector, so that attachment occurs in connector regions of moderately small vertical thickness. Such connections can be accomplished by providing platforms on the connectors which, have steps that are received in apertures formed in the circuit board. In this case, the platforms are preferably of circular shape so that they can be received in round apertures that can be simply drilled by circuit board makers. Each step of a platform can have a board-supporting surface at the step bottom, and with a higher step having a smaller width than a lower one. This enables a circuit board maker to choose which step will be received, by choosing the width or diameter of the aperture that he will form in the circuit board. Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated herein, it is recognized that modifications and variations may readily occur to those skilled in the art, and consequently, it is intended that the claims be interpreted to cover such modifications and equivalents.

Claims: IN THE CLAIMS: 1. An IC card which includes a housing, a circuit board assembly lying in said housing, said circuit board assembly including a circuit board having upper and lower faces and a plurality of components mounted on said board and projecting from at least one face thereof, and said housing includes upper and lower portions, laterally-spaced first and second opposite sides and longitudinally spaced first and second opposite ends, characterized by: said housing lower portion includes a plurality of board-supporting lower platforms at each of said first and second housing sides, each lower platform having at least one primarily upwardly-facing board-supporting surface with said board-supporting surfaces lying substantially in a common horizontal plane, and said housing having at least one step with a portion lying above the level of said board-supporting surfaces; said circuit board has opposite sides and has a plurality of apertures therein, with each of said circuit board sides being supported by a plurality of said board-supporting surfaces and with each of said plurality of apertures receiving one of said steps. 2. The IC card described in claim 1 wherein: each of said steps forms a board-supporting surface region lying above said board-supporting surfaces, to enable the support of circuit boards at different heights. 3. The IC card described in claim 1 wherein: each of said steps projects upwardly from the top of one of said platforms. 4. The IC card described in claim 1 wherein: said housing upper portion has at least one upper platform at each of said housing sides, with each upper platform having a primarily downwardly-facing board-engaging surface lying between two of said lower platforms and engaging said circuit board. 5. The IC card described in claim 4 wherein: each of said board-engaging surfaces lies at a height that is slightly below said board-supporting surfaces; said circuit board has a first side which extends between and lies on said board-supporting surfaces of said lower platforms and that is downwardly-deflected by said board-engaging surface of one of said upper platforms. 6. The IC card described in claim 1 wherein: said housing includes upper and lower housing halves respectively forming said upper and lower portions of said housing, with each housing half having opposite sides and with at least two of said platforms formed as part of said lower housing half and being longitudinally spaced along each of said sides of said lower housing half. 7. The IC card described in claim 1 wherein: said housing includes front and rear connector housing parts lying at first and second opposite ends of said housing, each of said connector housing parts having opposite sides, and at least one of said platforms and one of said keys lies at each of said sides of each of said connector housing parts. 8. The IC card described in claim 7 wherein: said housing includes a cover with upper and lower portions that lie respectively above and below a majority of said circuit board; said cover has forward and rearward ends that are mounted respectively on said front and rear connector housing parts, with said covers being rigidly connected to said circuit board substantially only through said connector housing parts. 9. An IC card which includes a housing and a circuit board assembly lying in said housing and having a circuit board with circuit components thereon, said circuit board having forward and rearward end portions, opposite sides, and upper and lower surfaces, with said forward end portion having a row of contact pads, said housing including longitudinally spaced front and rear ends and front and rear connector housing parts thereat, with at least said front connector housing part having contacts engaged with said contact pads, said housing including upper and lower portions and laterally spaced opposite sides, characterized by: said front and rear connector housing parts each have a pair of platforms with board-supporting surfaces, and with steps projecting above said board-supporting surfaces, and said circuit board end portions each have apertures that receive corresponding steps and have board surface portions supported on said board-supporting surfaces. 10. The IC card described in claim 9 wherein: each of said platforms has a plurality of steps including a lower step with a bottom forming a first of said board-supporting surfaces and including an upper step that is narrower than said lower step and that projects upwardly from a top of said lower step and with the bottom of said upper step forming a second of said board-supporting surfaces. 11. A method for constructing and assembling an IC card which has a circuit board assembly that includes a circuit board with opposite board sides, and a housing with upper and lower housing portions, opposite housing sides, and opposite housing ends, characterized by: forming said housing including forming a plurality of platforms at each of said sides of said lower housing portion, wherein each platform has at least one board-supporting surface and at last one step projecting up from the board-supporting surface; forming each of said opposite sides of said circuit board with a plurality of apertures at locations corresponding to said steps, and mounting said circuit board including lowering said circuit board onto said board- supporting surfaces while receiving said steps in said circuit board apertures. 12. The method described in claim 11 wherein: said step of forming said lower housing portion with a plurality of platforms includes forming each platform with a plurality of steps and with a board-supporting surface at the bottom of each of said steps, including forming each platform with a wide lower step, with a top which constitutes one of said board-supporting surface, and with a second step of smaller width than that of said lower step and which projects upwardly from said top of said lower step. 13. The method described in claim 11 wherein: said step of forming said housing includes forming a housing connector part at each of said opposite housing ends, with each connector part having opposite sides, and with said platforms lying at said opposite sides of each of said connector housing parts.

Inventors: BETHURUM GARY CAIN, BETHURUM, GARY, CAIN
Applicants: ITT, ITT INDUSTRIES, INC.
Application year: 1994
Main classification: G06K19
IPC codes: B42D15, G06K19, H05K5